Can Garland stop skid for Sox?

July 18, 2006|MARK GONZALES Chicago Tribune

DETROIT -- Manager Ozzie Guillen has kept his faith in the White Sox's starting pitchers despite the 17 runs in 17 innings they gave up in a three-game sweep by the New York Yankees. As strange as it may seem, Guillen might have the right guy to help the Sox embark on the two-week pitching dominance he seeks when Jon Garland opposes first-place Detroit in tonight's American League Central showdown. Garland (8-3) is 4-0 with a 3.41 ERA in his last five starts. Although he hasn't started a game since July 5, Garland has fared well after long layoffs. He pitched a complete-game victory over the Los Angeles Angels in Game 3 of the AL Championship Series on 12 days' rest. "With the way our guys are pitching right now, it looks a lot worse off than it really is because that bar is set so high," Garland said. "It's a grind. Guys are tired. . . . You've got to put it together." Guillen remains confident his starters will put together a hot stretch. "We haven't done that yet, and we expect that," Guillen said. "We expect to take that to another level. If our starting pitchers didn't have the ability to do that, then I wouldn't be saying this. "Our starting rotation has the ability to win 10 games in a row. I feel every guy has a chance to win." Tigers on a roll Sox slugger Jim Thome on the large strides Detroit has made since 2002, his last season with Cleveland, when the Tigers were in the midst of losing 106 games: "They're confident and they've got that swagger. For a lot of years (with Cleveland), you felt you could go in there and beat them, and now they've got that swagger. When you add guys like Pudge (Rodriguez) and (Placido) Polanco, and with the young pitchers they've got, and when you've got a general, a manager like (Jim) Leyland, who makes them believe, they do well. "I like our chances just as much, because the thing that we have is the experience, and we've been there. But they have a very good club." Confidence on rise Rookie Brian Anderson has raised his batting average from .152 on June 10 to .200 and has a seven-game hitting streak. Anderson has struck out only three times in his last 38 at-bats. "I have a lot more confidence, I'm mechanically sound and short to the ball," said Anderson, who also hasn't been charged with an error in 83 major-league games. "If I stick with the same approach and not try to change things, I'll be fine."